keep on keepin' on

Last night I hit my first wall. I was out for a run and at about the 5km mark I started to feel really weird. Nothing was hurting but I felt ready to collapse. My body was drained and it had nothing left to keep going. This kind of thing gets me really frustrated because in my mind I want to push on but my body just says no. I went home and right away had a piece of whole wheat toast with butter on it and a mouthful of orange juice. I immediately started to feel better. My body was missing something. Carbs, sugar maybe. I guess I should be a little bit more lenient with my eating habits in order to give my body what it needs to operate correctly. I’ve been really limiting carbs, especially in the evening, but maybe I need to change that up. I’ll have to do something because what I felt last night was not a good sign and I really need to listen. This is a dynamic learning experience and I have to find what works for me as I go.

I find myself lacking motivation lately as well. I think if I ever do this again it’ll be a lot easier the second time and not just because I’ve already done it once. Right now the end result is unknown (although I know what I want it to be). I don’t know what feelings or sense of accomplishment I’ll get from walking out onto that stage. Will it be enough to make me do it all again? Who knows! But if I do end up training for another competition, I’ll know exactly what it’ll be worth which I think will make the process a lot easier. In saying that, even when the competition is over I will most likely stick with some of the things I’ve been doing. My body has definitely leaned out and looks strong and that’s something I want to maintain all year round. And bikini season is right around the corner!

itsy bitsy teeny weeny

Well, I finally ordered my bikini. The last major thing on my list to do, well, besides actually look like a fitness model in it :S I’m a little nervous to get it and try it on. Sure it looks good on the girl in the picture, it definitely won’t look like that on me, but I’ll wear it as best I can. I’m used to buying my bikini top and bottom sizes totally different, but when I went to add this one to my cart, I had the choice of XS or S....great.

26 days.

I’ve switched my focus a little bit this week in terms of my workouts since I have a 10km race this coming Sunday. I’m going to alternate between legs and running. My lower body really needs to catch up to my upper body and it’s super frustrating! I’m going to condense my upper body gym days into one or two sessions and focus the rest of the days on legs and cardio. Hopefully this will burn off more fat and allow me to lean out a bit....which I don’t really need anywhere else but my legs.

My goal this weekend is sub 54 mins. I ran the Bridge City Boogie 10km race in Saskatoon last year in 53:58, which I did a lot more training for, and was a fitness instructor at the time...so I could be completely off in space with my hopes for this year. Stay tuned.

Our things from Canada arrive tomorrow! I’m excited to have my clothes back! We’ve been making due with two suitcases worth of clothes for 2 ½ months so it’s gonna be like Christmas!

poser.

5 weeks. My body hurts. I dream about fast food and potato chips. I still allow myself a cheat meal or two throughout the week, but after this week I plan to cut those out too. I’ve been doing a lot of YouTubing lately to watch girls on stage and how they walk, pose, move etc. I decided to slip on my sweet heels and strut my stuff around in front of the mirror to try and find my best angles and how to pose and turn my body to flex the right muscles and show off my best side (hopefully I have one). I can tell I’m going to need to practice this regularly leading up to the comp. I’ve never been a real girly-girl, bouncy and bubbly and swinging my hips and hair around so I think it’s actually going to take a lot of work for me to make it look natural on stage. I probably looked pretty ridiculous trying to mimic the girls I watched on YouTube.

I decided it was a good time to take some progress photos. It’s easier to notice any transformation and decide what area(s) need more focus and attention at the gym to achieve symmetry on stage. I know I still have a lot of work to do but I think I’m getting a little more confident of how ready I will be in 5 weeks.

I strongly dislike wearing shorts and I feel uncomfortable in a bathing suit, but it needs to be done (please ignore terrible bed head bun).

panclocks

Yesterday was wonderful! It was a holiday here in Brisbane; the sun was shining down and the temperature was nice and toasty! It’s a new concept for me to have a holiday on a Wednesday but it broke up the week nicely. We took Lily to the beach again (and ended up taking some of the beach home with us as usual) for a nice swim and stick chase. I don’t know why but every time I’m near the water I want to eat fish and chips. So fish and chips is now on my post competition day menu :P

One thing I like to do on weekends is make pancakes for breakfast, so yesterday was a perfect opportunity to get in an extra batch! About four years ago when I started learning about clean eating, I came across an excellent protein pancake recipe that was quick and delicious. One catch is that you need a blender to make them. I’ve been blenderless for the past two years and now I’m happy to say I’m the proud owner of a new blender and it’s going to get a lot of use! Here’s the deets:

1 cup whole grain rolled oats (not instant)
1 cup fat free cottage cheese
6 egg whites (1 egg white = 2 tbsp if you have the liquid stuff)
¼ tsp pure vanilla extract
¼ tsp cinnamon
4 tsp sugar (I sub this for about ½-1 tsp natural stevia sweetener)

Just put all ingredients into a blender and it comes out just like regular pancake batter! Instead of yummy maple syrup and butter I simmer about 2 cups of frozen mixed berries in a small pot on the stove to boil out the water and make a fruit syrup. This recipe makes about 6 pancakes so it’s perfect for two. There is about 30g of protein and 240 calories in three pancakes. And for those visual people like me, here are some pics (enjoy our temporary retro plates :P)!

stacked!

A while back (while browsing Pinterest I’m pretty sure), I came across a picture that said ‘If you want something you’ve never had, then you must do something you’ve never done’. Light bulb! So that got me thinking, what have I not been doing before? What have others done that have already achieved the same goals I have? I came up with a couple of things. One I talked about already, keeping a food and workout journal. The other required a little bit more research before I ventured into it.

Supplements.

The world of fitness and bodybuilding is polluted with so many different brands, types, pills, powders, flavours etc. I have never been a stranger to protein powder but I decided to explore fat burners and BCAAs (Branched-Chain Amino Acids). I’ve always been a skeptic on these kinds of things but I decided be open minded and do my homework. I searched the internet high and low for information, recommendations and ratings of different products and I’m proud to say my stack has been established! It consists of:

- 1 women’s multi-vitamin in the morning
- 2 x Lipo 6 Black Hers tablets (one before breakfast and one mid afternoon)
- 1 scoop Scivation Xtend BCAA during workout
- 1 ¼ scoop of Evolve Whey Protein post workout

The Lipo 6 Black recommends a dosage of three pills in the morning and three mid afternoon but since this is new territory for my body, I decided to start with one tablet and work my way up. This is supposed to boost your metabolism and help suppress your appetite. The BCAAs will help preserve muscle tissue while burning the fat stores during and post workout. I’m still skeptical on the fat burner as I read both negative and positive things about this product, but I will make my own opinion of it.

In my entry yesterday I mentioned there are no pills or shakes that can replace eating clean. I stick by what I say. These supplements are exactly that. I am hoping they enhance the good choices I make, not replace them.

So at this point it’s still a work in progress, an experiment I guess you could say. It’s too early for me to know if I’m benefiting from these supplements. Time will tell. But you don’t know unless you try right!

it's simple.

Listen to your body. Closely. Feed it what it needs to operate. Not empty calories that your body has to work harder to process because it doesn't know what you just consumed. Your body will fail you if you do. There are no 8 week diets, no miracle shakes or pills that can replace eating clean. There are only lifestyle choices. My favorite words from Tosca Reno 'the outside of your body is a direct reflection of what you put into it'. No one is perfect. I am not perfect. I do not eat perfectly all the time. But when I do make an unhealthy choice, I know that I am in control of my lifestyle. I indulge now and then, but I do so with awareness. Be a conscious eater. Read labels, but limit labels. That body part you see on someone else that you wish you had, is probably what they want to change about themselves. Be a healthy version of you. You can't change what body you have, but you can shape it into something amazing. Set goals, be patient, trust in what you cannot see right away. Ice cream always tastes better when you can't remember the last time you had it :P

platform queen

It’s been a busy few days but we’re all moved into our new house and loving it so far! There is still a lot to do and buy but we can take our time now and just enjoy being a family again.

Yesterday while I had my head buried in a half unpacked box, there was a knock at the door. I rushed to find a parcel waiting for me....my competition shoes had arrived! Of course I had to put them on right away and see how much of a chance there was of me falling and breaking something. Turns out they are actually quite comfortable and have mad grips on the bottom...hopefully preventing any slipping on stage! I made supper last night in my heels, did some laundry too...I felt pretty hot.

Next up, finding my outfits...

girly stuff

I am so very lucky to have the lovely Katey Dodt of Katey Dee Spray Tanning looking after my tan, hair and makeup for the big day! Katey will be spraying me down with multiple layers of deep brown goodness in the days leading up to the event to give me some sick muscle definition! I’m sure this will prompt several questions from people at work the next day. Why do you look like a giant candy bar? Did you fall into a Jacqueline sized mud puddle? There will be some serious scrubbing going on Sunday night, I guar-an-tee!

Katey is going to be my backstage buddy at the show. I’m sure the boys will enjoy sitting in the audience drooling over all the hot slabs of girl meat walking around in bikinis anyway.

I’m pretty pumped to get all done up by Katey. She does some amazing work and I can’t wait to be one of her subjects! Check her out on Facebook under Katey Dee Spray Tanning or www.kateydeespraytanning.com! Here are some lovely gel toes Katey did for me a few weeks ago (and they are still looking awesome).